Industrial storage and utility boxes are often used in environments where they are accessible by the public and may be exposed to elements of foul weather. Consequently, such boxes must be both tamper resistant and weather resistant.
The hinge assemblies of boxes are particularly susceptible to tampering. In many commercially available storage boxes, the hinge itself is exposed to the outside of the box along one side. Consequently, an intruder may gain access to the box by prying the exposed hinge apart to separate the cover from the body of the box.
Further, certain previously-used approaches for coupling a hinge to a box are likewise susceptible to tampering. For example, if the hinge is coupled to either the cover or the body of the box by rivets that are exposed to the outside of the box, an intruder may pop off or pry open the rivets to gain access to the box. In order to eliminate this problem, the hinge in many prior art units has been coupled to the box by welding.
Welding the hinge to the cover and/or body of the box, however, decreases the resistance of the box to weather damage (i.e., rusting), since adjacent surfaces must be clean and free of coatings in order to provide weld integrity. Consequently, the welded components may only be treated to resist rust after they have been assembled and welded.
Storage boxes are generally treated to resist rust by applying paint or some other rust resistant coating to the surfaces of the cover, body, and hinge. If the paint or other rust resistant coating is applied to the surface after assembly, it is generally impossible to apply the paint to adjacent, welded surfaces. As a result, these surfaces will have little or no resistance to rust.
Further, this method of manufacturing can be costly and time consuming. Welding the components together is expensive and requires a large capital equipment investment. Additionally, the application of paint or other coatings after assembly of the box is quite cumbersome and requires excessive handling.